Petrova Blood
by AnglcDmn1986
Summary: The long awaited sequel to All This Time: Now that Elena's back from 1865, she and Damon are enjoying life as newlyweds, but she isn't the only blast from the past in town, and this newest/oldest arrival is about to change everything.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: Just toying with the characters.

This is the sequel to _All This Time,_ the story I co-authored with Taaroko_. _It was on while I was writing it and you can still find that space where I kept it for the reviews, but it is published on Kindle Worlds. The story is only four dollars and I highly recommend you read it before you read this, but you don't need to feel obligated (though I would so muchly appreciate it if you did).

Petrova Blood is in its rough draft form at the moment since Taaroko doesn't have much time to dedicate to betaing but she is reading it with me as I write it. I'm mostly writing this on my own even though we have spent _hours _talking and planning this story together. This is gonna work a little like with Cheap Guitars, since I plan to publish it, but I want feedback from you guys as I write it. I also won't take it down as fast as I did with ATT (I still regret that a little) when it's finished. I'm sorry I did that. If you have an account and have questions about the original story, please don't hesitate to PM or tweet me. I have a facebook author webpage too where you can contact me too (just type FACEBOOKURLSLASHmaraamillerfiction) and I'm about to start a blog. I'm putting the URL in my profile sometime in the next few days so be sure to check it so you can find it if that thing over there just confused you…

Sorry. I'm exhausted. It's 2:22 am.

Okay! Here we go.

* * *

Prologue

_One Thousand Years Ago_

She couldn't move her arms.

Why couldn't she move her arms?

Slowly, Tatia started to wake. Her back ached and she tried to sit up only to find she was in an upright position, but not of her own volition. Her body wouldn't stop shivering.

"Good." The sound of that voice made the hair on the back of her neck stand. "You're awake. We can start now.

"Esther?" she asked, finding she could hardly find her voice. She couldn't remember what she was doing before she passed out. She must have passed out because she didn't even remember closing her eyes. "What…what's going on?"

"You are a vile thing who relentlessly tried to win my Niklaus and Elijah's hearts. You're nothing more than a slave and a whore." Esther spit in her face. "No matter, I have my uses for you."

Tatia looked down. She had no clothing on what so ever and her shoulders and legs were bound to the great white oak tree in the middle of the village. Her eyes widened in fear as she looked around, praying someone would notice what was happening. How could they not?

Not one person was in sight.

"Esther—I don't understand! I was only trying to protect myself and my daughter." She tried to fight the bindings against her, but it was no use. They were too tight. "I only cared for Elijah! I _never _wanted attention from Klaus!"

"That still didn't stop you from trying to manipulate him first," Esther said with a scowl when she grabbed Tatia's wrists. "At least my boys have the sense not to marry a dirty slave whore."

"But Elijah loves me! He promised to take care of me and my daughter," she said, her tears welling with tears. "I'm so sorry if I've upset you or—"

"Be quiet!" Esther hissed as she turned around to pick something up next to the tree on the ground.

"What—" Tatia started to panic when she saw a large, jagged knife. "Esther, what are you doing? My daughter! Freya—you can't—"

Tatia cried in pain as Esther pulled the blade across her wrists. She tried to pull her arms back but Esther was much stronger and forced her to hold her arms out.

"Why are you doing this to me?" she sobbed.

"If you truly care for Elijah, then you should be pleased to know your sacrifice will ensure his immortality."

Tatia tried, and fought, so hard, to pull her arms back and get away when Esther started to chant something unrecognizable and undecipherable but it was pointless when she started to lose consciousness.

~.~

"Oh, thank the Gods you're alive."

Tatia shrieked and scrambled across the dirty wooden floor away from Elijah. "Don't touch me!"

She was still naked, with blood caked to her wrists. Her head wouldn't stop _pounding. _Her eyes darted around the room, to Elijah, and to a kind witch she knew as Ayana, and then back to Elijah. He looked awful with a blood stained shirt that had a huge hole in the middle around his stomach.

"Tatia," he said in the soothing, rich voice that she had fallen in love with. "All is well. You're—"

"Well!? Nothing is well!" She shrieked. She held her bloody arms up. "Your mother did this to me!" She tried to stand but immediately fell back, only to be surprised when Elijah caught her.

"Look," he said, covering her with some furs, before he gently lifted up her arm. "Only blood. No wound."

"Get away from me," she said, pulling away from him in fright. "I told you not to touch me."

Elijah's hands were shaking now. "I know you're terrified, what Mother did is unforgettable but I _must _insist you calm yourself before—"

"Tatia," she span around to look at Ayana. "Elijah, you _both _must be still."

Tears started to run down her cheeks. "Ayana?" She felt wobbly on her legs and didn't stop Elijah when he finally came behind her and adjusted the furs over her shoulders. "What did Esther do to me?"

"A ritual," Ayana said. "She tried to sacrifice you."

"What?" Tatia gasped. "No!"

Ayana slowly walked up to her, holding her arms out. "Come here, child."

Tatia nervously looked at Elijah, but he nodded to her, smoothing back some of her hair before he kissed her temple. She didn't hesitate any longer and went to Ayana, wrapping her arms around her.

"Oh my," Ayana said as she patted Tatia on the back as she sobbed onto her shoulder. "Your humours are imbalanced, causing your strange behavior. They are stronger, more violent. They will fall out of alignment at the slightest provocation. You must take care to govern yourselves."

"So she is like me," Elijah said. "I never would have thought my blood would cause this."

Tatia pulled back quickly. "B-blood?"

Ayana smoothed some of her wild, long hair from her face. "Yes, Tatia. Blood."

"Esther cut my wrists. She drained my blood until I—how am I alive?"

"You're becoming what my siblings and I have become," Elijah said gently.

Her gums ached and her ears felt like they were on fire now. "I don't—Elijah, what _happened _to me? I thought I died."

"You did," Ayana said sorrowfully. "Which is why you must complete your change."

Tatia screamed like a frightened rabbit when Ayana pulled out the knife and tried to scramble out of Elijah's arms when he wrapped them around her. Somehow, she was stronger, and she managed to get away from her.

"There is no need to be afraid," Ayana said as she cut her palm. "I'm simply offering you my blood. I told Elijah to offer his to you, and so you must drink mine."

"As I told you before," Elijah said gently as he slowly approached her and took her hand, "all is well."

Something about the blood in Ayana's blood called to her. Her gums ached furiously.

"No—I can't."

"You must drink my blood," Ayana said.

"But—"

"Do you trust me, Tatia?"

She could have laughed in his face had she not been so terrified. She stared up at Elijah with wide eyes, but she didn't need to think too long about her answer.

"Yes," she said, unwaveringly. "But—Freya—my daughter—"

"I assure you she is safe," Ayana said, holding up her palm. "Now drink."

Tatia no longer could think about anything else as the scent of the blood called to her. She hesitated only a moment before she took Ayana's hand and pulled it to her mouth.

Suddenly everything felt better. Her head and her gums no longer hurt. She felt something strange move around her eyes as she drank the blood, but it tasted so much better than she would have ever imagined.

"That is enough," Ayana said, pulling her hand from Tatia's mouth.

"That was—" Tatia stared at her hand longingly, but then looked up at Elijah in surprise. "Am I actually hungry for blood?"

"What's this!?"

Frightened yet again, Tatia looked up and immediately wimpered when she saw Esther standing in the entrance of her family home. her fists were clenched at her side. Niklaus stood beside his mother, his mouth slightly ajar as he probably realized for the first time that Tatia was still alive.

"I thought I killed you," Esther said angrily.

Suddenly angry herself, Tatia took a step forward. "You _did_." She gripped the furs closely.

Esther threw her hands up and looked at Elijah with a look of disbelief. "If I had known you would just change her too I would have slit her throat. She can't stay like this."

"Don't you think you've done enough to this poor girl?" Ayana hissed loudly.

"Mother, I will not allow you to hurt Tatia anymore. She is under my protection—" Elijah started, but then fell to the ground and cried in pain as Esther held her hands up and looked at him intently.

"What are you doing to him!?" Tatia asked. "You're hurting your son!"

"Mother," Niklaus said, pushing past her. "Enough! I fully support the decision they made to undergo a native tradition."

"Tatia is a whore and a slave," Esther said in an annoyed tone. "I don't know how many times I must remind you of this, Elijah. We never supported the idea of you bringing slaves into this family."

"Stop!" Tatia finally roared. She felt something change in her mouth and around her eyes again as her anger overtook her sense. "You're hurting him!"

Charging, the only thing she could focus on was the undeniable urge to sink her teeth into Esther's neck. She almost managed it, too, until she felt something plunge into her chest.

"This situation has been out of control from the moment Elijah brought up the notion of marriage," Esther hissed as Tatia fell to the ground in pain. "I'm so relieved I'll finally be rid of you."

Tatia's head exploded in pain and everything went black.

~.~

This time Tatia woke to the soft sounds, familiar sounds of a humming girl, who gently ran her hands through her hair.

She sat up fast. "Freya?"

Her ten year old daughter startled. "Momma! You're awake. I thought you never would."

Relief coursed through her as she pulled Freya into her arms.

"You need to stop dying," Ayana said.

"I'm still not—" she looked at Freya hesitantly. "Esther!" She pulled Freya closer. "Where is she? If she comes anywhere near my daughter—"

"It appears Esther was not so honest with Mikeal," Ayana said as she sat next to Tatia on the bed of furs. "Niklaus was a wolf before Esther did the spell to make her family change."

"Momma, you're shaking."

She needed to still herself, she thought, as Ayana's earlier words came to her. "I have a lot of questions," she said."

"Esther used your blood to bring this curse. Your blood is what will break it."

"But my blood is no longer what runs in these veins!" Tatia said in confusion. "It is Elijah's!"

"No! It is not! But neither is it yours. It never was."

"I don't under-"

"Listen, Tatia!" Ayana said with an urgent tone in her voice after she stood again. "You are the crone. You must find the mother and the maiden. When you are all together, look to see the true faces beneath the matching reflections. Once that is what you see, your blood will break the curse."

"What does that even mean?"

Ayana quickly walked to a window near a line of dangling trinkets and looked outside. "I'm afraid I cannot tell you more. Take Freya, and run."

~.~

_Mystic Falls, 1865_

_Two weeks after the battle of Willow Creek_

"I can't watch this."

Tatia came to a sudden stop as her friend froze on the path to an abandoned plantation. "Allegra…" she said as tears welled up in the other woman's eyes. "I want to make sure—"

"I just can't," Allegra sobbed, yanking her hands from Tatia's grip.

Tatia thanked the higher powers that Allegra did not have the hearing of a vampire when she heard the flames roar to life. "At least I managed to find this place again. Johnathan Gilbert assured me she would get the proper burial she deserves so she can be with her ancestors. Ayana will be able to care for her."

Tatia slowly approached her sobbing friend and took her hand, pulling her toward her. Allegra resisted only for a moment before she gave in and cried on her shoulder.

"I just—"Allegra paused in an attempt to regain her breath. "That poor woman. Those poor children!"

Tatia noticed one of the many nosey upper class socialites of Mystic Falls staring at them, no doubt gleeful at the thought of perhaps spotting another witch to roast, and so she started to move Allegra away from the crowd to a more secluded area in the woods at the edge of the property. Tatia had been watching Emily Bennett for months now, intrigued when she heard about a pair of identical sisters who were guests at the Salvatore estate. Twins weren't uncommon but once she discovered rumors about demons haunting the town she had to explore the area.

She watched Rikard, the stupid fool, get caught after he attacked a woman. Rikard as always was an informative lackey when he confirmed her suspicions the twin Peirce sisters were actually her fellow doppelgangers when he couldn't tell if she was herself or Katerina Petrova. When she actually started living in Mystic Falls, she learned the other girl, Elena, had actually become engaged to Damon Salvatore.

"We should leave Mystic Falls," Tatia whispered. "I can't stand to deal with this town's crazy for executing innocents any longer. It is bound to call unwanted attention to itself eventually and it's making me very uncomfortable here."

Allegra sniffed, dragging her feet a bit as Tatia continued to make her walk. "But the power—"

"No," Tatia said firmly. "You'll have time to put her to rest once the hysteria has died down amongst the townsfolk. If you don't keep your wits about you my disguise may vanish. What will we do then?"

Emily Bennett had been a truly powerful witch, and that only made her death all the more tragic. Two weeks ago she had used a device to send Elena Gilbert back to her time, wiping the memory of everyone who came in contact with her during her adventure to the past. Thankfully Allegra had power herself that only grew throughout the centuries via body hopping and extensive spells to slow down the aging process. She was also still the reason Tatia and herself retained their memories after Emily sent Elena home. Being mistaken for Katherine Peirce could have disastrous consequences where twenty-six vampires had been trapped in a tomb only a fortnight ago. Tatia appeared to everyone as the blonde, blue-eyed baker's daughter.

"I shouldn't have done that spell to protect our memories," Allegra hissed. "In fact, I should undo it right now!"

"What would we do then?" Tatia questioned incredulously. "We might endanger ourselves by not keeping our memories. Having them protects us."

"Tatia," Allegra said, "we both know there is no possible way Niklaus would set foot in Virgina when he is busy building a life further south."

"No matter, doing something as careless as letting our memories be wiped is out of the question." They were finally out of sight in the woods. "If anything, this only makes me more determined to help my fellow doppelgangers."

Allegra scoffed. "We've been hiding for nearly seven hundred years and you have yet to actually _successfully _manage any of your plans. Besides, Elena is not even born yet."

Tatia scoffed indignantly, pushing some of her blonde curls from her face. "That doesn't mean I can't make plans to put that self-righteous—"

"Oh, you mean like the plan you made once to help Katherine's daughter have an easier birth once they discovered the child was breeched and she was in labor for nearly two days?" Tatia clenched her jaw together as Allegra spoke. "I barely managed to pull the babe from her before she died."

Sniffing, she smoothed invisible wrinkles in her dress. "She lived because of the vampire blood."

"And she still has never forgiven you. You doomed—quite possibly may I add—this Gilbert girl to the same fate as Katherine's if Niklaus ever finds her."

"Well, there are ways I can help with that since I know she will be born—"

"Were you not listening to me when I told you that if you do _anything _to interfere with Katherine or Elena's lives that you could cause a time paradox?"

Witches and their time paradoxes, Tatia thought bitterly. She'd heard Emily give Elena that very kind of speech before. At least she could rest assured that Elena's fiancé, Damon Salvatore, was safely immortal and was now helping Emily's children get to safety with their uncle and brother.

But, as she stared at Allegra, she could not deny that she had a point, and that her logic was infallible.

"Very well then," Tatia sniffed again. "I'm fairly certain I heard them mention Elena traveled one hundred and something odd years into the past. A hundred years isn't that long when you're as old as the both of us."

"I'm relieved, that for once, we can agree on _something_._"_

* * *

I think some of that stuff in the beginning with Tatia was the darkest, saddest thing I've ever written and I surprised myself because I wasn't sure if I could write it.

Don't worry. It's not just about Tatia, but she is an important character, and I'm having so much fun with her backstory. In case you didn't miss it, yes, she was a slave, and yes, she didn't get pregnant of her own violation even though she loved her daughter. Times back then weren't that pleasant. And let me just fucking add I _hate Esther_.

Oh! So I do have writing goals: I'm writing a second book to Cheap Guitars soon, finishing HOH by… I want to say June. June seems like a good goal. I'm pausing Better Halves while I write Petrova Blood. I have to put myself on a two fanfics at a time rule otherwise my muse will run me ragged. I'll have a better idea of how things will be once CG is for sale on Amazon.

Anyway, I ask you to please, please leave feedback. I wasn't ever going to post this on FFN but I realized how much you guys loved the first story so I had a change of heart. In the next chapter we're going to start off right where ATT left off with Elena and Katherine…and maybe a little of Damon's bourbon.


	2. Chapter One

**Please note, this is the sequel to All This Time. If you have not read the first story it can be purchased on Amazon through Kindle Worlds.**

Ta-da!

Next chapter.

I need to thank Taaroko, super awesome duct tapesmith and rockin' beta/friend. Again, she's stepped down from officially writing chapters for this story but she still has a major influence on the plotline since we've had most of this planned forever. A part of the reason chapters are so slow is that she is a graduate student and fairly busy but her input is invaluable for this story. 

Besides…sort of really missed bugging her for the little changes she made here and there on aim.

Chapter One

"How many pairs like this do I have? Ugh!"

Damon groaned softly into his pillow. Elena kept him up the entire night. He lost count of how many times he told her she had no reason to worry. All he wanted to do skip town with her because if they did then they could have a real honeymoon. He would love to take her somewhere she hadn't ever been before, like Italy.

Unfortunately they couldn't so he had to listen to her complain about her pants. She still felt uncomfortable in jeans.

"Just wear a skirt," he said in a muffled voice.

"Huh?" Elena poked her head out of the closet. "What did you say?"

"Wear a skirt," Damon turned toward her. "Problem solved. You don't need to spend two hours getting dressed in anymore, so come to bed."

"I'm not up _that _early." Elena disappeared through the doorframe.

Damon's phone alleged otherwise, at six-thirty.

"I'm ending this madness right now." He threw the covers from his body and stalked into the closet butt naked.

Elena's trunk of clothing and other keepsakes were in a corner. Damon had spent a considerable amount of time moving his things over to one side to make room for her after she moved in.

She had a pile of shirts on the floor. She probably wasn't comfortable with wearing them yet. "What?"

"I'm dragging you back to bed, wife."

"Damon!" He pulled her to him and picked her up. She squealed when he threw her over his shoulder. "I always get up this early for school! I need to pick Jeremy up today."

"Your brother has a license and a car, courtesy of me, so he would stop trying to kick my ass every chance he got. He can drive himself to school." He swatted her bottom. She shrieked again after dropped her on the bed and climbed on top of her. "You can spend another hour with me."

"It's your fault he keeps trying," Elena said. "You should have never let him gain an upper hand while you were training him."

"Okay, one, we want him to knock vampires on their asses. He won't die if he knows he can overpower them." He pinned her arms back when she tried to sit up. He trailed a small line of kisses down her neck to prevent further protests. "Two," he said against her skin, "I was hit by memories of falling in love with you as a human. Your fault."

"Mm," Elena didn't protest when his hand traveled underneath his stolen shirt, "you always need to be on guard around a hunter. Not my fault."

"It's _completely _your fault. He wouldn't be one if you hadn't killed the crazy psycho vampire killer who rolled into town." He chuckled when she let out a little huff and wiggled in an attempt to get her arms free.

"I was sired to you. That's all you, darling."

"Ah ah ah," he said, "you fell in love with me on your own," his hands traveled down to her panties.

"_Damon!_" she finally shrieked. "School. I'm divorcing you if you make me late."

Sighing dramatically, he flipped to his back. "It's going to be torturous with only Katherine for company." He let go of her arms.

Elena sat up, brushing some of her hair behind her right ear. Since she came home she hadn't been using heat to style it, which meant that it had kept its natural loose curls. Damon found he preferred her hair that way.

"I'll be home before you know it," she said. Then she rested her hand on his hip and whispered into his ear, "If you're good and let me get ready for school I'll _totally _make it up to you."

Damon responded by pushing her up to her feet and swatting her behind again. "Go get ready before I change my mind!"

~.~

"Is that seriously what you're wearing?"

Elena looked down. She thought she looked okay—she was wearing a black tee-shirt that said "love and peace" on the front with glitter—she chose it because Jenna left it behind and she missed her that day—and a jean skirt that almost reached her knees, with leggings underneath. To top it off, she had on a pair of knee-high boots and a maroon scarf around her neck.

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" she asked Caroline as she pulled her history book from her locker.

"It's just…" Caroline cringed as she looked at the outfit. "Super modest. Doesn't Damon let you dress the way you want to anymore?"

Elena sighed. "There isn't anything wrong with what I'm wearing," she said, stepping closer to Caroline. "Besides," she said in a whisper, "you know I'm still not totally comfortable with jeans anymore. I feel really exposed wearing pants. Seven months in the Civil War era will do that to a girl."

Caroline rolled her eyes. "I think you're just being ridiculous. Your outfit is silly and since you've been _married _to Damon I think his bad fashion sense is rubbing off on you. Seriously? Black shirt and black leggings? What the hell are you thinking?"

"Shh!" Elena said. "I don't want the whole school to know I'm married yet. And what do you mean Damon's bad fashion sense? He always looks amazing."

It wasn't that Elena didn't want to scream to the rooftops that she was Mrs. Salvatore. She wasn't afraid to make the official announcement, but she had seen what happened to girls who got married early in high school. The rumor mill was vicious once it zeroed in on one person. She wanted to enjoy her honeymoon phase with Damon in peace.

"Well I still think you made a _massive _mistake," Caroline said.

"You're just mad because when we have the real ceremony Katherine is going to be my maid of honor." Elena felt like she had been having this same fight with Caroline for _weeks._ "Look, Care, I don't want to fight with you about this, can we please not do this right now?"

Caroline shrugged. "Fine. Okay. I guess. I'm just still trying to wrap my head around the fact you're _married _to Damon."

"Where do you think Bonnie is?" Instead of saying anything which might bait Caroline into complaining about her husband, Elena closed her locker and leaned against it. "Ever since she started hanging around with Professor Shane I feel like we don't see her much anymore."

"I'm not sure," Caroline said. Someone knocked really hard into her shoulder in the hallway as they were passing the crowd of students. "_Hello!"_ Caroline shouted. "Careful much?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," said the girl who'd hit her. It was Tiki from the cheer squad. "Are we having practice later?"

"Definitely," Caroline said. "So you've met my friend, right?"

Elena narrowed her eyes at the blonde, wondering what she was up to. Sometimes she wondered if Caroline had switched brains with one of the insipid girls she used to endure in the knitting group. But Elena was probably just noticing it more because it'd been so long since she'd been able to hang out with her.

"Uh…yeah, Elena Gilbert, who I've known as long as I've known you," Tiki said slowly. Then she noticed Elena's outfit and she snorted. "On second thought, maybe I don't. What the hell are you wearing?"

Speechless, Elena said nothing when Caroline grabbed her left hand.

"Oh, didn't you know!?"

"Caroline," Elena tried to pull her hand back, but it was no use. Tiki's eyes went wide when she saw the engagement ring and wedding band. "Give me my hand back!" But her protests were ineffective.

"Yeah, she's Elena _Salvatore_ now," said Caroline.

Tiki squealed so loudly Elena wanted to die when she pulled her into an unexpected hug. "Oh my god! When did you and Stefan tie the knot?"

"Oh, she didn't marry Stefan," said Caroline, while Elena buried her face in her hands, completely mortified. "She married Damon, his _older_ brother."

~.~

Damon yawned as he wandered into the kitchen, in need of a cup for blood as he didn't feel particularly keen on just ripping a bag open that morning. He would have gone hunting with Elena but she had been so intent on getting to school on time that they couldn't go.

He blinked, took a few steps backward, then re-entered the kitchen. "Wow, I'm having the most intense déjà vu."

Katherine was standing at the island, looking like an egg beater had exploded on her. She wore her hair tie around her wrist while she picked globs of egg from her curls. A gallon of milk sat on the counter next to an open carton of eggs and a large mixing bowl. Something on the stove had a faint burning smell to it.

"What happened to you?" he said "Did you get into a fight with a chicken?"

Katherine frowned at him. "If you must know, I was leaning over the mixing bowl and my pony tail dipped into the eggs."

"Look, no matter how much sisterly affection my wife suddenly has for you, if you destroy my kitchen, I'm breaking your neck," he grumbled as he walked to the cabinet where they kept their dishes.

"What I said to you on Stefan's seventeenth birthday still applies," Katherine said with a harsh glare.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm a dead man if I tell anyone I caught you being all domestic. You're burning the bacon, Paula Deen." He zipped to the other side of the kitchen to dodge the wooden spoon Katherine had just thrown at him. "What are you doing in here anyway? You're not going to eat all of that."

Katherine rolled her eyes as she cracked an egg into a mixing bowl. "I'm making Stefan breakfast."

"Well if it weren't for the fact that Stefan already left and he drinks _blood_ I'd say that's really thoughtful of you," said Damon.

"Fine, I'm just practicing. I've never made pancakes before, okay? He does _like_ human food, you know. Anyway, what are _you _doing for Elena today?"

"Are you seriously giving me relationship advice?" he snickered. Unable to stop himself, he walked over to the dish cabinet and picked up the spatula. "Maybe you should be more concerned about why your boyfriend would rather be going to high school for the fiftieth time than hanging out with you."

To his surprise, Katherine didn't retort with a snarky comment; she merely turned around and smoothed invisible wrinkles out of her jeans before turning off the stove. He raised an eyebrow and tried to figure out why she was not responding to him. She seemed to be ignoring him so he rolled his eyes and moved over to wash the spatula in the sink.

"Why do Elena and Stefan insist on _going_ to high school?" she complained. "I see no actual point in it."

Damon grabbed a towel to dry off the spatula then turned toward her. "Well I agree about Stefan, but I think you're forgetting that Elena is only eighteen. It's…weird, but she has only been a vampire a few months here. Too many red flags might go up if she dropped out of school." Elena had halfheartedly suggested dropping out in favor of a long honeymoon trip, but he'd shot the idea down—once he got over the initial shock of her even considering it. He wanted her to finish school and live as normal as possible. There was no reason to leave her hometown sooner than their lack of aging required; she might regret it later if she made a decision like that too hastily. "She's nervous enough as it is since we got married. The younger you seem in a town with a vampire killing council, the longer you can stay."

"I suppose," Katherine said, but she still had a large frown on her face.

Unable to stop himself, Damon started laughing. "Please don't tell me you're entertaining the thought of attending high school just to spend more time with Elena and Stefan."

She shot him a malevolent glare, which only made him laugh harder, then picked up the mixing bowl and walked over to the trashcan.

"Hey!" Damon grabbed her wrist then took the bowl. "Just because you're pouting over Stefan going to school does not mean you can waste food."

"You really think I was going to eat this?" Katherine glared at him. "Eggs are disgusting."

Damon rolled his eyes. "If you really want to go to high school—and I have no possible understanding as to _why _you would want to put yourself through that torture—then why don't you just go?"

"Have you forgotten the part where Klaus lives in Mystic Falls? Whatever I want to do, it doesn't matter as long as he's here. I have to stay out of sight." She actually seemed nervous.

Damon could see right through her. Katherine wouldn't ever admit it, but she was tired of running and didn't want to leave now that she actually felt like she belonged somewhere.

"Cook the damn eggs," he said, shoving the bowl of eggs toward her chest. "Teenagers are constantly in and out of this house. One of them will eat them."

She rolled her eyes and took the bowl.

"You're my sister, more or less." He grabbed the mug he wanted for his blood. "I'd like to see Klaus try to come after you now."

~.~

"Oh my god, did you hear Elena Gilbert is Elena _Salvatore _now?"

"I heard Stefan's brother forced himself on her."

"I heard she's pregnant!"

"Ugh. What a slut."

"I'm pretty sure she's sleeping with them both."

"Ew, Andrea!"

Elena growled underneath her breath and walked into the girl's bathroom. What the hell was Caroline's problem? This was the exact reason she hadn't wanted anyone to know she married Damon.

She recognized one of the girls as a cheerleader, Nicole, who Rebekah compelled to be her friend. Tiki was there too, as well as another dark-skinned girl she didn't know. It didn't take much to deduce that girl was probably Andrea. Caroline had been avoiding Elena since morning and it was now almost time for lunch.

"Really, gossip in the bathroom and I'm not a part of it?" she said with a tight smile.

"It's just weird you're married," said Andrea.

Elena shrugged cutely. "I can't help it, girls, Damon Salvatore is off the market."

The three girls whispered quietly amongst themselves. Elena tried to remind herself it _wouldn't _be okay for her to bite all three of them in the restroom.

The one minute bell rang, signifying they only had a short time to get to their next class. Tiki and Andrea left but Nicole stayed behind to touch up her make up.

"I think it's totally disgusting," Nicole said, "what you're doing with the Salvatore boys."

"Okay, that's enough," Elena said.

She slammed her hair brush onto the sink counter then rushed toward Nicole. Nicole screamed but Elena quickly muffled her voice with her hands.

"You need to learn some manners." Elena hoped Nicole wasn't on vervain. She stopped fighting Elena and her shoulders went slack against the wall of the restroom.

"I need to learn some manners," Nicole repeated.

"Don't scream," said Elena, and she bit Nicole without a second thought.

She really needed to talk with Damon about going to Oregon for their honeymoon. Nicole's blood was blander than anything she'd ever tasted, except maybe that deer in her first week as a vampire.

"Ugh, do you eat nothing but tofu or something?" she said, pulling away. "What's wrong with your blood?"

"I'm on a master cleanse," said Nicole, managing to sound annoyed even through the vagueness caused by compulsion.

"Oh my god, Elena, what are you doing?"

Elena turned around at the sound of Bonnie's voice. "Hey, Bonnie," she said. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. Bonnie just stared at her in shock. "What?" She looked from Bonnie to Nicole and back again. "Oh, right, I guess the bathroom isn't a super private place to do this."

"Elena!" said Bonnie. "I don't care if it's private; you just fed on a classmate!"

"Bonnie, it's okay. I didn't take a lot," said Elena. "I got really good at knowing when to stop when I was in the 1860s. Your ancestor even helped me!"

Bonnie's mouth opened and closed soundlessly for a few seconds. "Uh-uh," she said finally. "Not dealing with this now." And she turned and walked right back out.

"I think you pissed her off," said Nicole.

Elena rolled her eyes, then locked gazes with her. "Clean yourself up and forget what just happened. When you leave this bathroom, you'll find your friends and tell them that my love life is none of their business."

~.~

Stefan wasn't sure if he planned on eating the congealed mass of white fluff the cooks in the cafeteria called mashed potatoes, but he sat next to Bonnie and Caroline in the lunch room none the less. Elena was nowhere in sight and he couldn't blame her.

"She was _feeding _on someone in the bathroom."

"Oh my god!" Caroline shrieked.

Stefan cleared his throat. "Shouldn't we keep this kind of conversation quiet?"

Caroline rolled her eyes as she peeled an orange. "Oh come on, Stefan. The only way anyone in this cafeteria is going to care about what we're saying is if they are paying attention to us."

"Well, as of last period, a lot of them think he's in a three-way with Elena and Damon," Bonnie muttered under her breath, which made Caroline cringe and Stefan nearly choke on his first (and only, he decided) bite of mashed potatoes. "Extra attention might be hard to avoid for a while."

"Caroline," Stefan said coolly after he had succeeded in swallowing, "do you want to tell me what she means?"

Caroline popped an orange slice into her mouth and shrugged innocently.

"Caroline," Bonnie said in a scolding tone.

"Come on, Bonnie, Stefan doesn't need to know. It's nothing big."

"If there are rumors about me being in a three-way relationship with my brother and my sister-in-law, then I think I need to know, don't I?" Stefan asked. He was trying _very_ hard not to let his mind create pictures to go with those words.

"Okay," Caroline said, "I'm telling you this, but you _cannot _freak out on me."

Bonnie rolled her eyes. "She was giving Elena crap this morning about what she was wearing when Tiki walked by. She told Tiki that Elena and Damon got married and now nobody in school is talking about anything else."

"_Bonnie!_" Caroline protested. "I wanted to break it to him gently."

"In fact," Bonnie said, "I'm pretty sure the favorite rumor is that she's a pregnant slut whore, and she doesn't actually know which of you is the father."

"Are you kidding me?" Stefan asked. "Is that why Elena's not at lunch with us right now?"

Bonnie shot him a look and Caroline avoided looking at anyone. Stefan groaned. When silence fell between them, he started catching snatches of the conversations around them.

"There's Stefan. I wonder if him and his brother have this weird thing going on where it's like they're all in a polygamous relationship with Elena's friends too."

"Dude, I'm jealous."

"You won't be when Elena's suing both brothers for child support. I don't think DNA tests can tell the difference when it's brothers."

"Don't be stupid. Of course they can!"

"Nuh-uh, it's too similar."

"Okay," said Stefan, slamming his hands down on the table. "I'm putting an end to this right now."

"What are you doing?" Caroline asked, staring at him in shock.

"Just what I said." With that, he stood up, climbed on his chair, then stepped right onto the tabletop. Students all over the cafeteria watched him in astonishment, some of them with spoons or forks halfway to their mouths. The weight of all those eyes gave Stefan a second's worth of regret, but he couldn't stand the thought of these idiots talking about Elena behind her back. He'd long since grown immune to hearing the school rumors about himself, but Elena had grown up with these people, and he knew how much it would bother her if she had to spend the last couple of months of school hearing this crap from them. And if she was already being driven to feeding on classmates…

He cleared his throat. "I think a lot of people here have heard the wonderful news. Elena Gilbert recently married my brother Damon."

A few teachers looked at Stefan in alarm but made no move to stop him. They were probably just as curious as the students. That was fine with Stefan, but he wouldn't have his sister in law's name ruined because of the gossip mill.

"I, of course, am delighted to see how happy the two of them are together. Anyone who wants to congratulate Elena is welcome to. Anyone who has anything _else_ to say will have to deal with me first. Enjoy the rest of your lunch." He hopped back down and strode right out of the cafeteria, past tables of gawking students.

~.~

"You're home early."

Elena dropped her bag next to the couch and then collapsed next to Katherine. "It was a long day. I didn't feel like staying the whole time."

"I don't see why you're bothering in the first place," Katherine huffed.

Elena grinned at her. "Did Damon give you a hard time while Stefan and I were in school?"

"Why would you think that?" Katherine asked.

Elena shrugged. "Where is Damon, anyway?"

Katherine shrugged too. "He left early this morning."

"Huh," Elena said. She pulled her phone out of her backpack. She'd sent him a text earlier complaining about Caroline but he had yet to answer her. "He hasn't answered any of my texts all day except to tell me to put my phone away in class." She rolled her eyes.

"Well, I'm glad you're home," Katherine said, "because I seriously need to get you out of that outfit."

Elena pouted and looked at her clothes. "What's so wrongwith what I'm wearing? I think I look cute! _Damon_ said I look cute!"

"Oh please." Katherine stood up and forced Elena to go with her. "Damon is so happy to have you home and to have his memories back he'd be happy if you walked around wearing a burlap sack."

"Well what am I supposed to do?" said Elena. "It's _really _uncomfortable wearing jeans."

"And how comfortable was it wearing gowns when you first got to 1864?" said Katherine. "You're not in the past anymore, sweetie. Now, come on." She stood up and pulled Elena along with her, leading her towards the stairs. "You've always had a dreadful sense of twenty-first century fashion anyway, so this is a wonderful opportunity to fix that."

"Hey, what is that supposed to mean?" said Elena.

"Your taste in clothing is pretty much hideous."

"I do not have a hideous taste in clothing!"

"You could stand to wear things that are a little tighter. We have awesome curves. _Flaunt _them."

"Hold on," Elena said as she stopped in front of her and Damon's bedroom. "If you're going to subject me to the torture of Katherine Peirce's wardrobe then I think it would be a good call if we got out the bourbon."

"Hmm." Katherine tossed her hair and tapped her chin with a finger. "I think we have been due for a bourbon and vervain drinking session, don't you think?"

"Ha!" Elena said. "I hope you have been keeping up with your vervain tolerance."

"Of course I have," said Katherine, though she shuddered a little as she said it. "I've especially got to stay on guard as long as Klaus and his sister are living in town."

"Well, I still have some vervain stashed in my trunk," Elena said. "How about I find Damon's good bourbon and the vervain, and you bring out the wardrobe." Elena still felt apprehensive, but Katherine was currently wearing a decent blue blouse and jeans, so she figured it wouldn't be so bad if she indulged her. "I'll try whatever you want me to try on while we drink."

~.~

"_How _do you walk in these shoes?"

Elena was pretty sure the pair of jeans she had on would ride up her butt. They were _tighter _than her skinny jeans. Katherine had also laced her into a black over-bust corset with steel boning. It had swirly royal blue vines and leaves on it, and even Elena had to admit that it looked gorgeous. It also felt a lot better than the corsets she'd had to wear in 1864 and Katherine didn't lace it up nearly as tight as Emily had. To complete the look, Katherine had somehow talked her into wearing a pair of high heels that made her feel five inches taller.

The alcohol was not helping her balance.

Katherine slammed down the bottle of vervain and quickly grabbed a tumbler full of bourbon. When she finished downing the burning liquid, she studied Elena carefully and stood up.

"Hold on, the corset isn't tight enough."

"We aren't trying to break ribs!" Elena cried. She took a step back.

Katherine rolled her eyes. "This isn't that kind of corset."

Elena hesitantly turned around. After a few quick adjustments she had to admit it _did _feel a lot better. She had the familiar support of a corset with none of the dreadful pain she first endured when she was stuck in the past.

"Wow. That does feel better."

"Mmhm," Katherine said. She reached for the bourbon tumbler and handed it to Elena. "We're out of vervain, but you should still have another drink."

"You didn't answer my question about the shoes. It wasn't rhetorical."

Katherine rolled her eyes and sat back down. "We're vampires, Elena. We're supposed to be graceful and agile."

Elena took another swig of her bourbon, wondering where Damon bought it. She figured she would have to pull her weight once in a while and help around the house now that they were married—Damon took his supply of alcohol seriously. Her cravings for gossiping cheerleaders were now at an all-time low thanks to her husband's secret stash of the good stuff.

"That's really funny," Elena said. "I saw you stumbling inside the house the other day when you moved in some of your things." Elena giggled at the memory. "If I remember right you almost fell on your face until Stefan saved the day."

Katherine rolled her eyes. "I did not trip. One of my bags got caught on a step."

"What do you expect when you're trying to move your entire wardrobe in one day?"

"Tell me what happened in school," Katherine said. "I wouldn't take Elena Salvatore as one to skip out on her studies."

Elena shrugged and awkwardly walked to the couch. "Caroline opened her big fat mouth and told everyone I'm married to Damon."

"And that's a bad thing?" Katherine asked in confusion.

Elena shook her head. "No, it's not a bad thing. I'm glad to call myself Damon's wife… it's just that high school students can be a little nasty with rumors."

"Hm," Katherine said. She took a big gulp of bourbon straight from the bottle. "I wouldn't know. I've never been to high school."

Elena gave her the side-eye. "Do I detect a small hint of jealousy?"

"What?" Katherine shook her head. "No. I couldn't possibly be jealous of you because you're a high school student, or because you have friends, or because you aren't on the run from Klaus."

"Hey," Elena said. She took the bourbon from Katherine's hands. "Don't talk like that. Bonnie and Caroline will warm up to you, and we won't let Klaus anywhere near you."

"I'm part of the reason Bonnie's grandmother is dead," Katherine said. "And I also smothered Caroline to death. I don't think I'm on their high queue of future friends."

"Well," Elena tried to adjust herself in the corset. "I don't know about you, but all of us have this uncanny ability to forgive everyone no matter what kind of crappy stuff they've done in the past." She took the bottle of bourbon and then added, as an afterthought, "You also weirdly sort of helped Caroline out when you killed her."

Katherine scoffed. "I did, huh?"

"_Totally_. I love Caroline to death but sometimes she was a mega control freak and could be ditzy. She's still a _huge _control freak but she grew in ways I could have never imagined had she not become a vampire."

"If she really caused so many problems for you at school today I doubt she changed much." Katherine took the bottle back. "I would never do that. So petty."

"Caroline just has trouble accepting Damon, and she does have her reasons. She's protective of Stefan too and it's not like I can expect everyone to just suddenly accept the fact I was magically transported to the past where I fell in love with Damon all over again and paraded around as your sister for seven months."

"Hmm," Katherine said. "Point taken." She took another drink.

"Easy!" I'm pretty sure we have a huge stash of bourbon here but I don't want my first fight with my husband to be because I'm drinking too much…. As for the clothes, I like the corset, but I don't know _how _you fit into these jeans. I feel like someone's going to have to cut me out of them."

"It's called yoga, dear," Katherine smirked. "Perhaps you should try it."

Elena scrunched up her nose. "Does yoga really…"

"Okay, more déjà vu," said a voice behind them.

"Damon!" said Elena happily. Now slightly on the tipsy side, she stood up to go greet him, but she still had not mastered Katherine's heels. Four steps in, she stumbled and almost went crashing to the floor, but Damon sped forward to catch her.

"What the hell are you wearing?" he said. He looked her up and down. "Not that I'm complaining…"

"I've been trying to show my dear sister how to display her womanly figure to best advantage," Katherine said. "As well as try to get her to stop wearing her god awful sparkly shirts."

Elena turned to glare at her. "I like my sparkles."

"_Someone_ got into my bourbon and her stash of vervain, didn't she?"

Elena kicked off the evil death traps of doom. "Those things will make me break my neck. I'm never touching something that makes me so tall again."

Damon pulled her closer to him. "I like this height much better." He leaned down to kiss her. "If you're done drinking with Katherine, I've got a surprise for you… if you haven't gone through two bottles already."

Elena shook her head and locked her wrists together behind his neck. "Nope! What kind of surprise?"

"I may get another bottle," Katherine said.

Damon pointed at her. "You will not. I'll tell everyone what you were up to this morning, Paula Deen."

Katherine gasped. "You wouldn't dare!"

Elena looked between her husband and sister in confusion. "Am I missing something?"

Damon shook his head and threw an arm around her shoulders. "Nope. You aren't missing a thing. You want your surprise? It's still in the back seat of my car."

Elena looked back at Katherine, excited. "As soon as I get my present we're drinking some more."

Katherine nodded. "Perfectly fine with me. I get to drink more."

"_Katherine_…" Damon said in a warning tone.

"Oh geez! I'm only going to stick to this bottle!"

Elena rolled her eyes. "You two always have to fight like cats and dogs. Come on, Damon, I want my present."

…

Sorry ahead of time for the long author's note!

Go look at my twitter for corset pictures. I am tweeting/squeezing over the corset we found that Elena wears in this from Etsy. In case you didn't know, my Twitter name is Mara_A_Miller.

I'm sort of putting myself on a writing schedule…we'll see how that goes. I think I have two days each week where I'm gonna work on the next story after Cheap Guitars (which is now published!) and PB twice a week on different days Weekends are going to be dedicated to HOH.

…Yeah. I'm writing. Like crazy.

Yeah, and speaking of-I officially published Cheap Guitars on Amazon. It's under my real name, Mara A. Miller. Please go support me by getting a copy. It would mean the world. I THINK it's going to be free for the next three days since I enrolled the story in the KDP Select program. It's 3.99 for Kindle, and 9.99 for the physical copy. Don't despair over the price. Like I said, I enrolled the Kindle version of the story. I might occasionally do countdown deals where it's .99 cents and there are two other days I can set for it to be free. There have been some bumps but I'm so incredibly proud of myself for finally getting the guts to publish something original… I already have another idea in my head for it as a series!

Physical copy might take a few weeks to get out since I have to get the proof and the files are still under review. My cover designer might throttle me if I need to make changes again too.

Anyway, back to THIS story—I can't tell you how long Taaroko and I sat and LAUGHED at Damon's "Paula Deen" comment to Katherine. It just popped out of me at random and it made me laugh so hard I scared my bunnies. I'm not sure when Tatia is going to appear again…but she will be appearing. :D

Jesus, it's almost 1am. I need to get to bed. Night guys! And PLEASE be sure to review! (HOLY CRAP AT THE RESPONSE TO THE PROLOGUE. YOU ALL ROCK).


	3. GOT YA :P

THIS WAS AN APRIL FOOL'S JOKE. I REPEAT, APRIL FOOL'S JOKE.

You guys _crack _me up. I promise I'll update sometime soon but I'm in the middle of rewriting HOH to make it original. I won't leave this story unfinished though. Just kind of hard to work on it when Taaroko is in the middle of graduate school and she can't help plot out chapters much. I'm still involving her as much as I can.

* * *

"Katherine?"

Katherine turned her head in the direction of a very timid, sad Elena. She loosely held her wedding and engagement rings in her right palm.

Confused, Katherine cocked her head to the side. "What's up?" she asked. "Don't just stand here. Come sit next to me."

"I think I jumped into the whole marriage thing with Damon too fast."

"Oh, honey," Katherine said, putting her arms around Elena. They both leaned against the White Oak growing in the middle of the back of the Salvatore Boarding House yard. "He waited one hundred and forty-five years to be with you because he loves you so much. I never stood a chance with him back in 1864. He fell for you instantly."

Elena laughed bitterly. "He did not. He just _thought _of me as you. He pinned me up against a tree and kissed me the first day he was back, even, because he mistook me for you. Damon never loved me."

"Elena—"

"But you love Stefan. He's your one true love."

In the distance, a car whizzed by, _The Power of Love _blasting so hard it was impossible to miss.

Katherine scrunched up her nose. "I hate that term."

"But he is," Elena said. She shoved her rings into her jeans pocket and sat up on her knees. "I don't know how to tell Damon I'm not sure if he's mine."

"Well of course he isn't."

Katherine whipped her head around at the sound of her own voice. Only it wasn't her voice, or even Elena's. The woman who spoke slowly approached them. Two identical men followed, one of them wrapping his arm around her when they came to a stop.

Katherine blinked several times. "_Stefan?_"

"Oh," one of them laughed. His hair was smoothed back with gel. "Sorry—I guess you don't know. Um…Not sure which one of you is Elena, but my name is Tom."

"Sorry I'm late."

Katherine jumped to her feet. "Stefan?" she gasped. She looked at everyone. "What the _hell _is going on?"

Elena stood too. "That's what I'd like to know." Her hand still hovered near her pocket where her wedding and engagement rings rested.

Katherine noticed how she kept eying Tom. She parked one of her hands on her hips and scrutinized the way the two of them couldn't seem to stop staring at each other. Stefan chuckled, pulled her into his arms, and kissed her temple.

"Isn't it obvious?" the unnamed woman said. "I'm Tatia. I'm one of the first doppelgangers. We're all fated to be with our one true love although it's never exactly that easy."

Elena shook her head in confusion. "Wait—what do you mean—_Stefan_ is a doppelganger too?"

Tatia heaved a frustrated sigh. "Isn't it obvious?"

The other unnamed Stefan-look alike gently kissed Tatia's head. "It's okay, love. It is a lot of information for them to take in at once. But look at Tom and Elena."

Stefan, Katherine, Tatia, and the unnamed man looked at them. Tom had approached her and they were staring at each other like love-struck idiots.

"Oh, Damon, I'm so happy you understand."

Katherine cocked her head to the side as Meredith and Damon walked toward them. Meredith looked a little teary eyed and Damon had his left arm wrapped around her.

"Hey, Elena babe?" Damon said. "I need that engagement ring back."

Elena reached into her pocket then handed it to Damon without a word. She kept staring at Tom, wordless, as if she were mesmerized.

"You're marrying her?" Katherine asked in confusion.

Meredith smiled. "We started talking about Ric since we both miss him so bad. Next thing I know he's asking me to marry him!"

~.~

"You put too many mushrooms in my spaghetti."

Katherine sat up with a start in bed.

Stefan gave her a sleepy, confused look. "What?"

Katherine laid back down and yawned. "You spent too much time in the woods hunting bunnies."

Stefan made a noise somewhere between a laugh and snort as he pulled her closer to him. "Go back to sleep, Katherine. You had too much whiskey."

* * *

LMAO GOT YOU.

APRIL FOOL'S!

I swear, this is just another joke. I repeat, _this is a joke_, just like the one we pulled on you guys last year. Only I wrote it this time. I was proud of the white oak tree bit. *snicker*

I promise I'm thinking about Petrova Blood, and regular updates will be happening soon. Camp NaNoWriMo is this month so they won't be fast, but they will be coming. I'm really excited because rachellebelle, Layla Reyne, and Jazzywriting Amy are participating! HOH has an official cover I'm in the process of paying for and I plan to publish that at the end of May if I get it all rewritten. I'm putting it in first person and I have a feeling it's going to gel so much better than it did before. Once I send HOH to be edited I'll have some time to work on PB, for sure. While you're waiting for my craziness to calm down back to the level of normal you can get a copy of CG if you'd like—there will be errors in it if I do it now, though. I noticed a few that left me pissed off until one of my friends offered to edit it for me. He's trying to get something like 50 pages a day done and I appreciate what he's doing so much. I'm thinking about putting it on Kindle for free two more days sometime this month. You can keep track of what I'm doing on Tumblr, as anglcdmn1986, Twitter as Mara_A_Miller, or my facebook author page, (insert FB link)/maraamillerfiction.

By the way, I freakin' love you guys. Almost 50 reviews? The bunnies send a lot of kisses your way!


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